Building Big Bertha: 800G
- Thread starter bbrantley
- Start date
drummereef
Team RC
That's going to be sick. 
Well, well... ready for some more pics? All fresh from today for your viewing pleasure.
Here's the tank on end in the garage bay, where it has been hogging my car's normal spot for the last month or so. I also had to run a heater constantly in the uninsulated structure so that it didn't go below freezing out there. I'm glad to get my parking space and my electricity back!
The six very strong guys who moved the tank decided to use some suction cups to provide additional purchase. The suction cups gradually lost their suction due to being attached to the paper instead of something perfectly smooth, so they had to keep pumping them back up every few seconds.
The tank was placed on one furniture dolly and plywood was leap-frogged along the driveway (and snow, rocks, etc.) to bring it over to the door.
Of course, we took the door off to give plenty of room!
Only one small set of stairs to negotiate for this tank move. I can't imagine having to slide it down a narrow flight or around crazy corners.
Nick guides the dolly over the threshold.
Now these are interesting: Nick decided to use these little dowels to act as rollers for getting the tank fully onto the plywood top. I wasn't so sure they would do much good...
Here's the tank about ready for the final lift... and the only time it was truly in the air supported only by human hands.
My favorite shot!
RC won't let me put all the pictures in one post, so...
Here's the tank on end in the garage bay, where it has been hogging my car's normal spot for the last month or so. I also had to run a heater constantly in the uninsulated structure so that it didn't go below freezing out there. I'm glad to get my parking space and my electricity back!
The six very strong guys who moved the tank decided to use some suction cups to provide additional purchase. The suction cups gradually lost their suction due to being attached to the paper instead of something perfectly smooth, so they had to keep pumping them back up every few seconds.
The tank was placed on one furniture dolly and plywood was leap-frogged along the driveway (and snow, rocks, etc.) to bring it over to the door.
Of course, we took the door off to give plenty of room!
Only one small set of stairs to negotiate for this tank move. I can't imagine having to slide it down a narrow flight or around crazy corners.
Nick guides the dolly over the threshold.
Now these are interesting: Nick decided to use these little dowels to act as rollers for getting the tank fully onto the plywood top. I wasn't so sure they would do much good...
Here's the tank about ready for the final lift... and the only time it was truly in the air supported only by human hands.
My favorite shot!
RC won't let me put all the pictures in one post, so...
...here's part deux:
I was right, for once, on the dowels: they immediately started to spin and rotate every which way, causing lots of noise and consternation, and the tank ended up on the platform by brute force... essentially just shoving it on there! Afterwards we propped it up and yanked out what remained of the powderized dowels.
Nevertheless, everything ended up just fine:
And here is the long-awaited Mermaid shot! This Mermaid has plenty of room to grow in this tank.
Here's a view from inside the Bertha Room. Removable black acrylic panels will attach to this back panel when Bertha is not undergoing maintenance. You can see the nice hang-on overflow and two return bulkheads in the top.
The stand/floor/plywood combination has proven to be a bit more of a challenge than we anticipated. Fortunately, with some quick consultative support from James at Envision (thanks, James!) we decided that we would place some shims in between the plywood and the steel frame where gaps existed. Then we went back in between with a caulk gun and shot a bunch of polyurethane glue up in there. Tomorrow the plywood top will be firmly, and permanently, attached to the stand, but we should have no gaps and better load transfer... cross fingers. We also decided not to add a thin piece of foam atop the plywood -- the steel stand was 1/2" higher than specified, so we ran out of room on the overhanging wall cutouts. There is about 1/16" of a gap between the top of the tank and the wall!
Here you can see the 3 drain bulkheads, the black acrylic side wall, the clear acrylic bottom panel (it looks white by comparison), the sealed plywood layer (gray), a bunch of shims, and the steel stand.
I sure hope this thing works! In a few days we'll fill the tank and measure for any gaps, deflections, or other craziness. Cross your fingers!
We're also making good progress on a number of other elements: the ceiling track is ready to install, the material for the aluminum light carriage will arrive tomorrow, and we've prepped all the power outlets and circuits so that I can finally start planning the electrical runs. (I have 3 20A and 1 15A circuit available in the room.) The ventilation hardware is ordered and on the way, so we'll drill the holes in the exterior wall of the fish room for those ducts soon. We have to concoct some form of grating/support for the "catwalk" portion of the stand; that will likely be a coated steel grate of some sort.
Fun stuff!
Ben
I was right, for once, on the dowels: they immediately started to spin and rotate every which way, causing lots of noise and consternation, and the tank ended up on the platform by brute force... essentially just shoving it on there! Afterwards we propped it up and yanked out what remained of the powderized dowels.
Nevertheless, everything ended up just fine:
And here is the long-awaited Mermaid shot! This Mermaid has plenty of room to grow in this tank.
Here's a view from inside the Bertha Room. Removable black acrylic panels will attach to this back panel when Bertha is not undergoing maintenance. You can see the nice hang-on overflow and two return bulkheads in the top.
The stand/floor/plywood combination has proven to be a bit more of a challenge than we anticipated. Fortunately, with some quick consultative support from James at Envision (thanks, James!) we decided that we would place some shims in between the plywood and the steel frame where gaps existed. Then we went back in between with a caulk gun and shot a bunch of polyurethane glue up in there. Tomorrow the plywood top will be firmly, and permanently, attached to the stand, but we should have no gaps and better load transfer... cross fingers. We also decided not to add a thin piece of foam atop the plywood -- the steel stand was 1/2" higher than specified, so we ran out of room on the overhanging wall cutouts. There is about 1/16" of a gap between the top of the tank and the wall!
Here you can see the 3 drain bulkheads, the black acrylic side wall, the clear acrylic bottom panel (it looks white by comparison), the sealed plywood layer (gray), a bunch of shims, and the steel stand.
I sure hope this thing works! In a few days we'll fill the tank and measure for any gaps, deflections, or other craziness. Cross your fingers!
We're also making good progress on a number of other elements: the ceiling track is ready to install, the material for the aluminum light carriage will arrive tomorrow, and we've prepped all the power outlets and circuits so that I can finally start planning the electrical runs. (I have 3 20A and 1 15A circuit available in the room.) The ventilation hardware is ordered and on the way, so we'll drill the holes in the exterior wall of the fish room for those ducts soon. We have to concoct some form of grating/support for the "catwalk" portion of the stand; that will likely be a coated steel grate of some sort.
Fun stuff!
Ben
jnarowe
New member
Holy tight crack Batman! I had no idea you were going through the hole.
Nice mermaid shot! I thought the tank was going to cover the overhang in the back. What is that for, a catwalk?
BTW, from the looks of those shots, it seems you will have a lot of ambient light to deal with. Are you able to block the natural light?
Nice mermaid shot!
I thought the tank was going to cover the overhang in the back. What is that for, a catwalk?BTW, from the looks of those shots, it seems you will have a lot of ambient light to deal with. Are you able to block the natural light?
AquariumSpecialty
.Registered Member
Be very careful with the gaps as I know you will. Great progress. When are you planning to "just add water"? The mermaid has feet
Q. what are you using for a back drop?
Q. what are you using for a back drop?
Thank you all for the compliments!
The extra part of the stand hanging out the back is for the "catwalk", yes. I would love for the ceiling in that room to be 6 inches taller, for then I would not even have to lean over when standing on it. Ah well. I think I'll be leaning over anyway.
The back of the tank has black, removable acrylic panels which will cover it... so, hopefully no worries about the ambient light! (However, that room used to be my media room, and is completely blacken-able, so it might interesting to see what it looks like without them...)
And yes, Scott, we're applying the utmost care with the gap-filling and general leveling issues. I can't say I'm thrilled about it right now, but it is what I would call a "manageable risk."
The extra part of the stand hanging out the back is for the "catwalk", yes. I would love for the ceiling in that room to be 6 inches taller, for then I would not even have to lean over when standing on it. Ah well. I think I'll be leaning over anyway.
The back of the tank has black, removable acrylic panels which will cover it... so, hopefully no worries about the ambient light! (However, that room used to be my media room, and is completely blacken-able, so it might interesting to see what it looks like without them...)
And yes, Scott, we're applying the utmost care with the gap-filling and general leveling issues. I can't say I'm thrilled about it right now, but it is what I would call a "manageable risk."
Ohhh... sorry! Yes, the tank room side was a media room. The viewing room is my entire first floor (except for the tank room) -- living room, dining, and kitchen. And, yes, it has vaulted ceilings and floor-to-ceiling windows all the way across it.
I'm not able to control the light in there, except if I wait for it to get dark.
I'm not sure why I would want to, but as I think about it, perhaps you either mean so that (a) it's easier to enjoy the tank or (b) no direct sunlight lands in the tank? The answer to possible-concern A is that my old tank sat right in front of where the long viewing panel is now, and the lights above it were plenty bright to keep it enjoyably viewable during the day. In fact, they were almost too bright at night, especially when we like to go sit in in the hot tub on the deck and enjoy the stars.
The answer to possible-concern B is that a small amount of direct sunlight will fall upon the tank during most wintry months around midday. I would guess about two hours of maybe a 1-foot-high section of direct sun -- when it is lowest in the sky. We have a fairly large roof overhang and 25 feet of distance between the wall 'o glass and the wall 'o... acrylic, I suppose. So it has to come in at a pretty shallow angle to hit the tank head-on. Last winter I really enjoyed it because I got to see the tank in a different coloration. It really helped fuel coral (and coralline) growth, too! I did adjust the synthetic light to compensate roughly for the extra amount of energy being dumped in.
Ben
jnarowe
New member
yeah I just had a concern that there would be too much light reflecting off the tank to view it comfortably. My viewing room can be sealed off if needed for viewing. It looks like you have a great room there and if you can control the reflections, it will be super sweet. That corner install is really bold. I had contemplated a similar situation but couldn't get my head around it. Mostly because the wall I installed my tank in is the only load bearing wall in that part of the house.
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8402995#post8402995 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jnarowe
yeah I just had a concern that there would be too much light reflecting off the tank to view it comfortably. My viewing room can be sealed off if needed for viewing. It looks like you have a great room there and if you can control the reflections, it will be super sweet. That corner install is really bold. I had contemplated a similar situation but couldn't get my head around it. Mostly because the wall I installed my tank in is the only load bearing wall in that part of the house.
Yeah, you make a good point. I think it will offer excellent viewing in the daytime, but that's only because I remember that I enjoyed observing my previous tank. I'm sure it will look even cooler at night, though.
As for the load bearing and the corner, I originally was not thrilled about having no choice with respect to the corner post. I felt like it added more complexity and risk to the project, and I wanted a continuous, wrap-around look to the tank. (I would have had loved a big curved continuous piece there... though I believe, from having priced acrylic later, that my bank account would have absolutely hated it.) And, of course, it was much easier to feel comfortable about it once the engineer signed off and essentially took on liability for it being structurally sound.
Now that the tank is in, I agree with alien and a few other commenters... I think it is kind of cool to have the corner, and I think it may serve to make the tank feel even larger with two distinct viewing "windows."
jnarowe
New member
I can tell you for sure that the distortion in a curved corner would totally suck wad. You are way better off with the way you did it and the visual accuity will not be disturbed by a curve. Next time you are in a store with acrylic tanks, take a close look at a rounded edge and multiply that by 10. Your install is genius.
Well, I was hoping for a very-small-radius curve... so just a different look than a sharp butt joint, but not much to really look through. I agree that a 5" radius or something would be really psychedelic and headache-inducing. I have trouble looking at tanks at big public aquariums when they use those curved panels -- even the really big, slowly curving ones. Everything shifts as you move your head and it's mind-numbing.
I am used to see things in the ocean through the relatively distortion-free panels in my dive goggles.
Ben
